


Painkiller

by smallearthcat (vamplover82)



Category: Fringe
Genre: Amber Verse, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-21
Updated: 2015-08-21
Packaged: 2018-04-16 09:50:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4620813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vamplover82/pseuds/smallearthcat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Olivia regains her memories of the original timeline, Lincoln isn't the only one affected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Painkiller

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kerithwyn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kerithwyn/gifts).



> Comments and con. crit. are much appreciated.

Charlie could tell the kid was hurting over being forgotten, that much was obvious, and he felt bad about it, truly. But until he expected Liv to join him for their usual Friday night takeout and she said she already had plans with Peter, he hadn't really understood it. She was throwing off a years-long tradition, and yeah, she did look sorry about it, but that didn't stop it from happening.

What's more, Lincoln was there to witness the whole thing, and he was giving Charlie this look of utter sympathy, and it took everything Charlie had not to punch that look right off his face. Luckily, common sense reasserted itself before he did anything stupid, and he managed a smile he was sure looked much more like a grimace.

"There's a diner not far from here that's pretty decent," Lincoln finally said.

Charlie wasn't exactly surprised by the offer, but he wasn't really expecting it, either. They stared at each other for several seconds, longer than he'd expected Lincoln would keep it up, and Charlie decided to blame that steady gaze for his answer.

"Yeah, okay."

They grabbed their jackets and left the empty lab.

***

Neither of them said anything on the short walk over, but the silence felt more deliberate than uncomfortable. They were seated in a booth typical of diners everywhere and had asked for coffee before either of them tried to start a conversation, and to Charlie's surprise, it was Lincoln who spoke first.

"I'm sorry she forgot your standing date." Charlie let out a harsh laugh that was decidedly not a happy sound.

"I'm sorry she forgot your existence." Lincoln smiled ruefully, looking just a little hurt, and Charlie wished he hadn't said anything, even if he had meant it. "And it wasn't a date," Charlie hurried on, not wanting to linger a point of pain for Lincoln.

"No, of course not." Lincoln sounded perfectly sincere, but somehow the words struck Charlie wrong, and he felt compelled to clarify.

"She was a good friend when my wife left me. We started going to dinner so I'd stop wasting my weekends in bars." There was a hint of a smile on Lincoln's face, and Charlie sighed in exasperation. "I'm not helping my case, am I?"

Lincoln laughed outright at that. "Not even a little bit. Next you'll tell me you started eating in and crashing on her couch."

That had happened more than a few times, not that Charlie had any intention of confirming it. He must have given something away with his expression, though, because suddenly, Lincoln was laughing again.

"No, really? How did she not end up being a rebound?"

Charlie shook his head. "Maybe she was. Are platonic rebounds a thing?"

"No idea, but at least you had someone."

"Yeah."

The mood turned somber as they trailed off into silence, both wishing Olivia was with them. Fortunately, their waitress came along with their coffee then and took their food order. When she was gone, Charlie cast about for something to say that didn't have anything to do with Olivia.

"What do you think of the Other Side?" Maybe not the best topic, but it was better than nothing, and they could avoid talking about Olivia if they were careful.

"It's...interesting. Different, but the same."

"I know what you mean." Charlie probably couldn't have come up with a better description for it.

"Was your double much like you?"

"More than I'd care to think about. He seemed pretty happy, even though he'd never been married and was infested with those...bugs." Charlie gave an involuntary shudder and thanked his lucky stars yet again that Walter Bishop had been here, willing and able to help him when he'd been in a similar situation. "He's just a guy doing the same crazy-ass job we all do."

_He's still as freaked out about it as I am_ , Charlie didn't say. _Guys like us aren't supposed to have to adjust to this kind of shit, especially not when we still have to do the field work_.

Charlie felt old and bitter just thinking it, so he pushed the thought away and turned his attention back to Lincoln. "What about you? Same, or different?"

"Our personalities differ a lot more than our backgrounds would indicate should be possible. He's more science-oriented, more confident, more of a leader than I'll probably ever be. It's weird not being able to pinpoint the divergence."

That was a sentiment Charlie could wholeheartedly agree with; he could see points of difference from his double, but had no idea what the point of divergence (assuming there was a singular one) was. "I'm with you there, kid."

Lincoln made a face at being called a kid, but Charlie was saved any commentary on his choice of words by the arrival of their food.

***

Neither of them spoke much while they all but inhaled the surprisingly good burgers and fries. It was comfortable, probably more so than it had any right to be, given that they hadn't really ever spent any time alone together, and Charlie found that he was actually glad he hadn't gone home alone to stew over Olivia choosing to spend time with Peter rather than him.

When he was finished eating, Charlie sat back, hands clasped over his stomach. Lincoln did the same moments later, and they found themselves staring at each other once again, though this time with more of a sense of satisfaction.

Charlie had no real desire to leave, but he felt like maybe he should go, stop taking up the kid's time and let him get on with whatever he normally did on a Friday night. He was just thinking about trying to flag down their waitress for the check when Lincoln spoke.

"They have a brownie ice cream thing that's to die for."

"How can you possibly still be hungry?" Charlie asked incredulously.

Lincoln shrugged. "Give it ten minutes of watching me eat mine, and I bet you will be, too."

He was right, of course; Charlie did flag down the waitress half an hour later, but it was for a brownie ice cream thing rather than the check.

Talk turned away from work and toward other topics – television, sports, Connecticut – you name it, Charlie was pretty sure they talked about it. He got so lost in the conversation, in fact, that he didn't realize quite how late it had gotten. Not until their waitress came back, and instead of asking if they wanted yet another refill on their coffee, she said, "Lincoln! Who's your friend?"

Charlie looked up at her, surprised by the intrusion, then over at Lincoln, who was flushing bright red. He wondered briefly about the source of the embarrassment but pushed the thought aside as he was introduced to their new waitress.

"Stella, this is Charlie. Charlie, Stella."

"Good to meet you, Charlie. Nice to finally see this one here with some company."

" _Stella _."__

__Charlie was pretty sure Lincoln would have been making shushing motions at her if he thought he could get away with it without being seen. Interesting._ _

__"Well, it is. You've been in town long enough now that surely you should have had a chance to meet _someone_. And he looks alright for another suit." She gave Charlie a wink, and he grinned in response._ _

__"You're not so bad yourself, Stella."_ _

__She smiled in response. "I like you, Charlie. You come back anytime, with or without Lincoln. More coffee?" she offered, topping them up before moving away._ _

__"So, when you said you knew a diner nearby..."_ _

__"I come here when I can't sleep, which is more often than I'd like. Hence knowing the night waitress."_ _

__It wasn't terribly surprising, now that Lincoln had said it, and Charlie wished Lincoln had said something to one of them. Really, Charlie should have noticed the air of exhaustion around him that, in retrospect, seemed obvious._ _

__"Maybe we ought to call it a night, try to get some sleep."_ _

__Charlie still didn't really want to go, but if it meant the kid got a solid 8 hours, he'd be happy to do the same himself._ _

__"Yeah, we probably should."_ _

__Charlie was pretty sure he wasn't imagining the look of disappointment that crossed Lincoln's face. Still, they paid for their food and left, Lincoln taking a left toward his hotel, and Charlie a right toward the train station. He walked a couple blocks and turned the corner, but on a hunch circled back around to the diner from the other side._ _

__Sure enough, Lincoln was just inside the door, and if Charlie had thought Lincoln was going back because he actually wanted to be there, he'd have left it alone. Instead, he walked back in just as Lincoln was settling back into the booth they'd vacated not five minutes earlier. Lincoln looked up at his entrance, clearly startled to see him again._ _

__"Come on, kid. We're going back to mine."_ _

__Lincoln flushed bright red again, and Charlie caught Stella laughing and giving Lincoln a thumbs-up out of the corner of his eye as they left. Ah, so that was it; she thought he was _taking Lincoln home_._ _

__"She thinks you're getting laid," Charlie couldn't help but comment._ _

__"Yes, I'm aware," Lincoln replied, voice tight with tension._ _

__"Do you want to?" Charlie asked, because why not? There were definite reasons why not, Charlie knew that very well, but he didn't try to take it back._ _

__"Do I want to _what_?"_ _

__"Get laid, Lincoln." Yeah, this was either going to crash and burn or be fantastic._ _

__"You can't just _say_ things like that."_ _

__"No, you're right, I shouldn't." He really shouldn't; they worked together, and there were all kinds of rules against this. But Lincoln hadn't said no._ _

__"Why are you doing this?"_ _

__A fair question, and one without a good answer. "Maybe I'm just tired of being alone, and I think you are, too."_ _

__Lincoln sucked in a breath, and Charlie knew he'd hit a nerve with that one. Good, they could both clearly use the company, if not the complications, but at that point, Charlie was willing to go ahead with it anyway, and fuck the complications. Lincoln didn't answer for a long while, and Charlie was happy to let him think in peace, especially since there were actually people on the train they'd just boarded._ _

__"How about we see how it goes when we get there?" Lincoln suggested as he sat down next to Charlie and promptly put his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. Charlie smiled to himself because Lincoln hadn't had to sit next to him; this time of night, there were a lot of empty seats._ _

__***_ _

__By the time they got to his house, Charlie had gone back and forth about the wisdom of his offer. It would be better for both of them if Lincoln just crashed on the couch, but Charlie was fairly certain that would only happen at Lincoln's behest. As Lincoln took in the living room, Charlie briefly wished he'd kept things a little tidier, but the thought was fleeting, especially when he remembered that Lincoln was, for all intents and purposes, still living in a hotel._ _

__All the same, he gathered up the few takeout containers that were lying around and took them to the kitchen to throw away. When he got back, prepared to try to get a read on Lincoln, he was cut off at the pass by Lincoln grabbing his tie and pulling him into a sloppy kiss. Well, that answered that question._ _

__Charlie moved in closer, until he was pressed up against Lincoln's body, at which point he untangled Lincoln's hand from his tie. A moment later found Lincoln's hands at the knot instead, clumsily trying to pull the tie off now that it had served its purpose. Once it was gone, flung somewhere across the room, Lincoln moved swiftly through his buttons, following his hands with his mouth, leaving Charlie feeling a little overwhelmed._ _

__He hadn't been prepared for Lincoln to just jump right in like he had, and not with nearly such enthusiasm. Before he really even had a chance to reciprocate, Lincoln was on his knees, probably ruining a perfectly good pair of suit pants, but also trailing his tongue down Charlie's stomach. He lingered once he reached Charlie's bellybutton, where Charlie expected something ticklish but instead felt a surge of arousal on par with what he usually got from a hand on his cock._ _

__He instinctively sucked his stomach in, and Lincoln pulled back to laugh. Charlie let his breath out in a whoosh, laughing a little himself. Lincoln took the opportunity to unbuckle Charlie's belt, undo his pants, and Charlie certainly didn't find it funny anymore when his pants fell and Lincoln grabbed the bottom of his shorts and pulled until his dick sprang free._ _

__Lincoln wasn't wasting any time, Charlie would give him that; once he knew what he wanted, he was clearly comfortable just going for it. Either that or he thought if they didn't get right to it, it wasn't going to happen. Charlie preferred to think it was the former. In any case, Lincoln didn't waste any time, leaning forward and taking him right in, like he'd done it a million times, like sucking Charlie off was a typical Friday night._ _

__Charlie groaned; it had been far too long since anyone had done this for him. He rested his hands on Lincoln's shoulders, trying to keep his balance as Lincoln did his level best to get Charlie off. It was entirely too short a time, mere minutes, before Charlie felt his orgasm start to curl in his balls, and he pushed Lincoln away before it could get there, wanting to at least make it to the bedroom, get Lincoln out of his clothes, before he was down for the count. Lincoln looked like a wet dream come to life – rumpled suit, glassy eyes, lips red and spit-slick, and tenting his pants like he was the one moments away from coming._ _

__"We-" Charlie paused to clear his throat, "we should take this to the bedroom."_ _

__Lincoln gave Charlie's dick one last lick before he stood and finished helping Charlie out of his clothes. Charlie felt a little weird, maybe, about standing naked in his living room while Lincoln hadn't so much as loosened his tie, but the feeling died quickly when Lincoln stood back for a moment to give him a once-over._ _

__Lincoln smiled faintly as Charlie shivered, and that spurred Charlie forward, grabbing Lincoln's hand and pulling him toward the bedroom. Lincoln started stripping the second Charlie let go of his hand, but Charlie stopped him and took over, slowing down considerably and running his fingers over every inch of skin as he bared it._ _

__Lincoln shuddered as Charlie gripped his cock through his pants, and maybe Charlie didn't feel so much like taking his time after all. He finished quickly and pulled Lincoln down onto the bed with him, relishing the slide of skin on skin as Lincoln settled on top of him, kissing him until he was breathless and thrusting his hips for the beautiful friction of their dicks sliding together._ _

__Charlie started groping in the direction of the nightstand, but they were too far away for him to reach it. Caught up as he was in what they were doing, it was several minutes before he finally managed to roll them over, sitting on Lincoln's thighs and leaning over to dig through the drawer for lube and a condom._ _

__He found them fairly quickly and dropped the condom on the bed, popping the top on the lube and slicking his fingers. Lincoln shifted under him, trying to spread his legs, but Charlie shifted his weight onto his knees, effectively keeping Lincoln in place. He reached back, slipping a finger inside himself and huffing out a breath._ _

__"Oh," Lincoln breathed, eyes wide, obviously not expecting things to go quite that way._ _

__"This okay?" Charlie asked, though from the look on Lincoln's face, he couldn't imagine it wouldn't be._ _

__"No, yeah. I just didn't think...come here."_ _

__Lincoln pulled Charlie forward far enough for his hand to join Charlie's, framing the two finger Charlie was now thrusting into himself. He traced his way around them, causing Charlie to swear and move faster. It wasn't long before Lincoln laced their fingers together as he eased Charlie's free of his body. Charlie gave them a brief squeeze before pulling away, grabbing for the condom._ _

__He put it on and slicked up Lincoln's cock as quickly as he could, moving back until the tip was lined up with his entrance. He pressed back, and Lincoln's dick slipped upward, leaving a streak of lube in its wake. They both laughed, and Charlie leaned forward, resting his weight on Lincoln's chest._ _

__Lincoln reached down and took hold of his dick, keeping it steady, so when Charlie pushed backward, it slid in with no trouble. Lincoln grunted and tried to thrust, but with Charlie on top of him, he managed little more than a slow grind, which felt pretty fantastic in and of itself. Charlie leaned down for a kiss, picking up on the grinding himself and swallowing Lincoln's resulting moan._ _

__After a moment, he pulled away and braced himself on the bed, lifting up briefly before sinking back down. They got a good rhythm going, and Lincoln was gripping Charlie's thighs so tightly, he was pretty sure there would be bruises. Charlie's orgasm was building slowly, given that neither of them was paying his cock any attention, and since he wasn't terribly close, he'd somehow thought that Lincoln wouldn't be either._ _

__Turned out he was completely wrong about that, because they did another one-two-three, and then Lincoln was holding him in place as he came. Charlie stayed where he was until Lincoln started making noises of protest at the prolonged contact as he went soft. Charlie sighed and held the condom on Lincoln's dick as he pulled off, thumping down next to Lincoln and immediately taking hold of his own dick._ _

__Lincoln batted his hand away and moved down until he could rest his head on Charlie's stomach, resuming the blowjob he'd started back in the living room. Charlie put his hands on Lincoln's head this time, unable to help himself, but Lincoln didn't seem to mind when Charlie pushed him down a little further. He kept up a slow, steady motion, like he was blissed out or just plain tired. Charlie didn't care either way, as long as he didn't stop._ _

__Charlie's orgasm kept up the slow build, slow enough, in fact, that he didn't realize he was close until he was already coming, holding Lincoln to him but trying not to be a complete asshole by shoving his dick down Lincoln's throat. When he relaxed his hold, Lincoln shifted up to lie next to Charlie, and Charlie had the brief thought that freshly-fucked was a good look on him before he drifted off to sleep._ _

__***_ _

__When Charlie awoke in the morning, Lincoln was gone, which was unfortunate, both because Charlie liked waking up with someone beside him and because that greatly increased the likelihood that things would be weird on Monday. Charlie was about to roll over and go back to sleep when Lincoln walked back in, still naked. He looked surprised to see Charlie awake, probably because it was 8AM on a Saturday._ _

__"Morning," Charlie said, voice gruff, sitting up and allowing the sheets to puddle in his lap._ _

__Lincoln watched them fall and then blushed as red as he had in the diner the previous night, turning away as if to give Charlie some privacy._ _

__"Morning," Lincoln finally replied, "I made coffee."_ _

__Normally, Charlie didn't bother with coffee over the weekend, but it was early and Lincoln was still there, and he sort of liked the idea of drinking it naked in the kitchen. He got out of bed and followed Lincoln there, leaning against the counter as Lincoln poured them each a cup._ _

__"Aren't you, ah, going to get dressed?" he asked, eyeing Charlie once more._ _

__"Are you?" Charlie countered, enjoying putting Lincoln off-balance. Lincoln opened and closed his mouth several times, at a loss for what to say. "Not that I'm saying you should." Charlie eyed Lincoln blatantly, wishing he was entirely naked._ _

__And there was that lovely blush again. Charlie got the feeling this was something he'd be having fun with in the future._ _

__"I probably should, though. I need to get home."_ _

__That was such obvious bullshit that Charlie very nearly laughed. Instead, he switched his mug to his left hand and ran his right hand idly down his stomach, ruffling the hair leading down to his cock._ _

__"Or," he said, grinning as Lincoln tracked the movement, "you could just stay here, where clothing is optional."_ _

__Lincoln swallowed visibly, and as Charlie moved toward Lincoln, intent on removing his short, he knew he'd won that round._ _

__***_ _

__Come Monday morning, Lincoln was up early, insisting that he really did need clean clothes before going into work, and Charlie was inclined to agree, so he let Lincoln leave without a fuss. Not having gotten a call from Olivia that he was needed that morning, Charlie made his way into the office for an exciting day of paperwork, much of which he spent wondering how _Lincoln's_ day was going and then chastising himself for acting like a school kid with a crush._ _

__He ended up not being called in for a Fringe case until two days later, and by the time he got arrived, there was no time to do anything but think about not dying a grisly death, so he didn't actually get a chance to talk to Lincoln until well into the evening, when they were both covered in crusted-over goo they were assured wouldn't cause them any harm. It was awkward at first, and they just stared at one another until Lincoln reached out to swipe his thumb over Charlie's eyebrow and shook the goop he came away with onto the ground._ _

__"It was about to end up in your eye," Lincoln said by way of explanation, and it was probably just as well he'd taken care of it, because Charlie hadn't even been able to tell it was there._ _

__They smiled at each other, and things felt normal again, or at least what passed for normal in the Fringe division. They cleaned what goop they could off of themselves and each other, and when Olivia quite obviously preferred to ride back home with Peter, Charlie offered to drop Lincoln back at his hotel, suppressing his own stab of disappointment at not having any time with her._ _

__They chatted idly on the way back, and Charlie considered inviting Lincoln home with him again but didn't. Hours later, he regretted that decision when it became apparent that the godforsaken goo was some kind of stimulant; he was so wide awake he couldn't even stand to lie in bed for more than a few minutes. He paced for awhile before giving staying home up as a lost cause and catching the next train back into the city._ _

__Charlie didn't know which room of the hotel Lincoln was in, so he took a chance on the diner, and lo and behold, there was Lincoln, looking just as alert as Charlie felt, even without the aid of coffee. Stella was working again and obviously remembered him, if the shit-eating grin on her face was anything to go by. Charlie gave her a cheerful wave and slid in the booth across from Lincoln, who didn't seem at all surprised to see him there._ _

__"You as awake as I am?" Lincoln nodded. "Wanna go back to your room?"_ _

__Lincoln picked up the puzzle book he'd been working in and slid out of the booth, Charlie hot on his heels._ _

__***_ _

__After that, things settled into something of a pattern. They'd see each other at work – more and more often, actually, now that Peter was back in the picture; they effectively became partners and were called in mostly in a backup capacity – and once or twice during the week, Charlie would stay with Lincoln, who would then join him at his place over the weekend. It was working for them, and Charlie was just beginning to feel settled again when Olivia managed to shake everything up once again._ _

__"I was _dead_?"_ _

__Everyone in the room winced, including Olivia. "Charlie, I-"_ _

__"No, I get it now, why you act like we're not close. Jesus, I thought you were getting used to the new memories, but you're trying to get used to _me_."_ _

__Charlie ran his hand through his hair and walked to the far end of the room. He didn't know whether to be glad they'd been called over to the lab for what was essentially a false alarm or not. On the one hand, everything suddenly made a lot of sense, but on the other..._ _

__"How did I die?" Charlie asked, voice low and dangerous but perfectly audible in the dead silence of the room._ _

__"I'm really not sure I should-"_ _

__"When? _How_?"_ _

__"A shapeshifter, two years ago."_ _

__The loudly indrawn breath came from Lincoln, and all eyes trained on him. He looked, to Charlie's eyes at least, like someone had knocked the wind out of him, which considering how his last partner had died, wasn't all that surprising._ _

__"We're going back to the office. _Now_."_ _

__"You can't just _leave_ like this," Olivia pleaded._ _

__He didn't know if she wanted to explain further or what, but at the moment, he was far more concerned about Lincoln than about whatever she had to say._ _

__"I can, and we are."_ _

__Charlie didn't so much as look back as he walked out, but he knew Lincoln wouldn't be far behind him. When they got back to the SUV, they sat in silence, Charlie running his hand up and down Lincoln's back in a soothing motion as Lincoln rested his head on the dashboard._ _

__"You didn't lose me. In her timeline, we never even knew each other."_ _

__Lincoln laughed bitterly. That obviously wasn't as comforting as Charlie had hoped. "You sure about that? Maybe I did lose you. Maybe I lost you the same way I lost Robert. Hell, maybe I never lost Robert, or maybe I never even knew him."_ _

__He was right, of course; Charlie had no idea what things were like in that timeline. "I'm not sure of anything right now."_ _

__Lincoln turned to face him then. "Are _you_ okay?"_ _

__Was he? Charlie didn't know; all he knew right then was that his whole life suddenly felt like borrowed time. "I don't know, probably not. I honestly can't even begin to think about what this means."_ _

__"They're not expecting us back at the office, are they?" Charlie shook his head. "Let's just go home."_ _

__They really shouldn't, but Charlie was also pretty sure neither of them would be getting anything done if they did got back to work. "All right."_ _

__***_ _

__That whole weekend, Lincoln pretty much refused to leave Charlie's side, for both of their benefit, Charlie supposed. Lincoln got to know firsthand that Charlie was fine, and Charlie had a distraction from thinking about his own death. It wasn't foolproof, because Charlie still couldn't sleep, kept awake wondering what had happened without him and why he'd been given a second chance. It was futile, he knew, because there was no way to _know_ , but that didn't stop him from thinking it._ _

__Charlie woke Saturday morning, after too few hours of fitful sleep, to the insistent ringing of the doorbell. He groaned and pushed at Lincoln, freeing himself from the other man's grasp and stumbling his way to the door. He didn't remember he was only in his boxers until he opened the door and Olivia's immediate reaction was to give him a once-over and raise an eyebrow. He had no real desire to talk to her right then, but she held out a coffee as a peace offering, and he would have felt like an ass turning her away after that. He sighed and let her in, grabbing the nearest t-shirt and not caring if it was clean._ _

__"I should have told you sooner," she said after she'd taken a seat, "but I didn't know what to say. How do you tell someone you've known for years that you don't know them as well as they think because they've been dead for year?"_ _

__"That would have been a better start than ignoring it and spending time with Peter instead."_ _

__"Charlie, you have to know how much I love him."_ _

__"Yeah, I do, which is why I'm not ripping you a new one right now. That and I really am too tired to deal with this at the moment."_ _

__"Sorry, I should have realized it was still early, but I didn't think this should wait."_ _

__"Liv, I don't know what to say. I'll forgive you, because you're one of my best friends, but I can't promise that everything is okay right now."_ _

__She smiled a little sadly, but looked like she hadn't expected any different. "Thanks, Charlie. That's all I'm asking for."_ _

__"Yeah, okay. Now, get out of here; get back to Peter, who I hope is still in bed at this hour."_ _

__"You should get back to whoever you were with, too."_ _

__Charlie was just about to ask how she knew when Lincoln chimed in._ _

__"He really should," he said mildly, though he didn't try to disguise the accusatory tone in his voice._ _

__"Wow, I am definitely interrupting. I'll see you guys on Monday." And with that, she left._ _

__"Sorry," Lincoln said when Charlie turned to face him, but it was obvious he wasn't really sorry at all._ _

__Charlie didn't mind as much as he probably should. "She knows now. It's not the end of the world."_ _

__Lincoln smiled and dropped the pants he'd been holding on his hips, and Charlie followed him back to bed._ _

__***_ _

__Things were weird for the next couple of weeks, though not as weird as they could have been. Olivia didn't let on that anything was different, but for her sake, he kissed Lincoln in the middle of the lab one day, so they'd all know. There was some amount of surprise from the others, but the relief from both Olivia and Lincoln made it worthwhile._ _

__It was mostly okay after that, though Charlie could tell Lincoln was chafing a bit at how little time they were spending on Fringe cases, which is why he wasn't surprised when Lincoln jumped at the chance to go over to the Other Side, even if it was basically a milk run. They weren't very busy at the moment, so when Lincoln asked if he wanted to go with, Charlie agreed. Lincoln wasn't the only one who wanted a little something different, and Charlie wondered when he'd had enough of a chance not only to get used to Fringe cases but to actually miss working them._ _

__Of course, their milk run turned out to be nothing of the sort, not with David Robert Jones still Over There getting up to God knew what. They still didn't really know by the time the whole ordeal was finished, and somehow, Captain Lee had ended up dead. Something twisted unpleasantly in Charlie's stomach at the news, and he looked over at Lincoln yet again, reassuring himself that yes, his partner was still alive. Lincoln was clearly aware of what he was doing and subtly shifted toward him, until they were standing so close their shoulders were brushing._ _

__Charlie was grateful for the support, especially when the next words out of Lincoln's mouth were, "She's got no partner anymore. I'm going to stay here and help out."_ _

__Charlie wanted to object, was about to, even, but when he looked at Lincoln, it was obvious the other man wouldn't be swayed. Charlie's heart ached over the likelihood that he was going to lose Lincoln to Olivia and the Other Side. They still had to go back home briefly to give their report, and Charlie got through it pretty much entirely on the basis of having done it so many times before._ _

__"And I'd like permission to stay on the Other Side to try to help find Jones," Lincoln ended with._ _

__"Me, too," Charlie heard himself say, and both Broyles and Lincoln stared at him for a moment with identical looks of disbelief. "You have a full team over here, and I can be spared just as easily as Agent Lee can. Their Olivia lost both her partners, Agent Francis to retirement from the division, and Captain Lee to Jones' scheme. She could use our help."_ _

___I don't want to lose my partner _, Charlie didn't say, but he was pretty sure that came across loud and clear.__ _ _

____After a moment, Broyles nodded. "Very well, you're both cleared for assignment to the Other Side."_ _ _ _

____For a moment, Charlie was afraid to look at Lincoln, unsure if Lincoln would be happy, pissed off, or something in between, but the second Broyles walked away, he couldn't wait any longer and turned to face his partner. To Charlie's great relief, Lincoln mostly looked stunned._ _ _ _

____"You're really doing this?" he finally asked._ _ _ _

____"Only if you want me to."_ _ _ _

____"I want you with me, yes, but...you realize I might not want to come back, right?"_ _ _ _

____Charlie had had a feeling that might be the case. "What have I really got going for me here that I couldn't have there? Besides, I can always come back if I want." He didn't think he'd be coming back, not if Lincoln didn't, but it wasn't a thought that bothered him overly much._ _ _ _

____"Jesus, I love you," Lincoln said, pulling him into a rib-crushing hug._ _ _ _

____"Same here," Charlie whispered back._ _ _ _

____Eventually, they pulled apart and headed through the door to the Other Side, hopefully to a life together that would offer them everything they were looking for._ _ _ _


End file.
